I had appointments last week at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, Department of Urology.  This was to check whether the bladder cancer had reared its ugly head.   Well, it hasn't.   I am free of the ugliness for now.   I will have another check up in three months.

Also I am finishing my second month of treatment for the CLL/SLL.   I am taking a drug called Brukinsa which is an oral medication.  You take two pills every morning and two at night.  There are no awful side effects like there can be with traditional chemo.   I have some fatigue (more than usual for an octogenarian) and easy bruising.  I have a dandy on my lower leg which I think came from compression socks.  Guess I won't wear them anymore.  For those who are interested, the drug is a  in a class called BTK inhibitor (Bruton Tyrosine Kinase).   A very simple explanation is that it blocks the signaling and triggers the death of cancer cells.  There is a high rate of success with these new drugs.  I will take it for at least a year.

I would also like to respectfully encourage you to donate to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society if you get the opportunity.  They have provided a grant to me to pay for this very expensive medication.

I am very  grateful to the society and to all their donors.

I am also extremely grateful to the surgeons and their extended staff for the successful surgery I had at Mayo in September.  It saved my life and made it possible for me to feel much better.  Dr. D'Angelo and Dr. George operated for 8 hours and were able to put everything back together.   I cannot say enough good things about  my experience.

2024 is starting off much better for me than last year.    I hope this continues and wish all of you only the best.